Dead Island Riptide Offers Up Bikini-Laden Statue, Publisher Quickly Apologizes

@dr_mantas said:

Sometimes I feel like the guy shouting SOYLENT GREEN IS PEOPLE. IT'S PEOPLE!

Except I feel like shouting IT'S YOU. YOU ARE THE SEXISTS. It's your white knighting and oversensitive reactions to everything. It's your overprotective attitude and dealing with women like they're made of glass and will shatter at the slightest wind. YOU ARE KEEPING WOMEN BACK.

Women are and should be equal to men in the eyes of the law, the government and their fellow humans. They are not a minority, they are the majority.

This isn't sexist. You are.

Get over yourselves. You are not helping. Really.

Ah the old "recognizing racism/sexism makes YOU the racist/sexist!!"

Being aware of representation of gender and race and questioning it is not a problem. Being oblivious to the fact that offensive and derogatory representations exist is a problem.

Exactly how does pointing something like this out as being sexist halt the feminist movement or the progress of women?

Jenn Frank killing it.

Tweets About Torsos (@jennatar) tweeted at 0:54 PM on Tue, Jan 15, 2013:

"B-but feminists, don't you know what women in other nations endure, aren't you lucky?" Yeah, we know, someone made a fucking toy out of it.

I'm buying 20 of those just because. 
And then I'm gonna hide them in a box, and then I'm gonna mod all my games so all female characters are either blurry or replaced by a cardboard box.  Then everything is alright again. 
 
We can't have females in our games, not to mention having the torso of a female zombie who was wearing a bikini on a beach. Good lord man, what would Jesus say? Or Clint Eastwood?!

lmao at the scumbags defending this

if i keep denying sexism exists, maybe people won't call me out for being scuh a sexist fucker

Sexist? Only as sexist as explicitly using larger society's definitions of sexuality, in this case the cultural attribution of attractiveness to females, to sell a product and promote the idea of the game. It's interesting whenever these "debates" flare up because as is always the case, we place a large emphasis on definition but never really explicitly defining those definitions during our speech. It's like painting 4 different walls of varying materials, strengths, and construction the same color in such a way that we can't tell the difference. And then you stand in front of that wall and argue about your wall assuming that because others have it the same color, it's the same wall as you. I'm not saying that to call people stupid, far from it, but to possibly account for some of why these discussions inevitably go off into directions and are more about situational argumentation. It's not surprising that such situations are much more likely in culturally loaded topics, like treatment of social categories like sex/gender. Anyway, just throwing that out there.

The real problem with Patrick's article is that it's very sparse and decidedly not self-aware about one off moral dismissals like "it's over the line, boo sexism" which is fine but by itself isn't really much of a compelling piece of writing. I honestly think Patrick can do better than a few lines of moralism. I want Patrick to approach these topics but even if we assume that his 1reasonwhy articles were decent at it, this is less so and personally I think GB is better than reposts of other news stories with some pointed opinionated line at the very end. Either couch that opinion as such or invite the reader to think on it, discuss, or expand on it. I don't know about you but it's more about execution than topic and with respect to sex and gender in the games industry, Patrick needs to step up his game. I'm saying this as someone who honestly loves Patrick on the site but even I have to think back and wonder whatever happened to scoops. Of course it isn't much effort to repost a news story Patrick thinks is worth posting, but I'd rather not have it at all if he isn't going to do anything meaningful with it. I'd almost say save it for Worth Reading if only because that is all about snippet reposts.

This is why I think the Bombcast is a perfect place for snippet/repost news stories because it's self-regulated in a lot of ways, it's a discussion, and is about all the variety of news going on, not just one story occupying the space of an article.

The first and only thing I thought of when I saw this preorder bonus was, "Wow they're really setting the bar for dumb preorder bonuses that no one would ever want." Stop wasting your time writing these terrible agenda driven posts. This isn't kotaku. This isn't joystiq. Report the news don't give us your personal crusade for women's rights. They don't need your help. They can write their own articles. I sure as hell would respect that sentiment coming from them instead of you. Please tell your friends to, "suck your dick" more and then consider why a statement like that has homophobic connotations before you try to play this holier than thou bullshit.

@DjDonFrancisco said:

I imagine that the marketing meeting went like this:

“Alright guys, we need something that represents Dead Island. Something awesome, that people will want to display in their homes”

“What about a bloody cricket bat?”

“No. Too basic.”

“Alright, what about a…statue?

“I like it! Mock something up and i’ll return”

A few weeks go by and the head of marketing returns.

“Alright guys, what’ve you got?”

“This mangled statue! Looks just like one of the enemies in the game”

“I like the idea…..but it needs something else….needs to be sexy. Give me something else.”

Head of marketing returns a few days later and walks in on a guy fondling a orange attached to the old statue by bikini.

“….Perfect.”

A splintered half sized cricket bat with some painted on gore would have potentially been a cool "collectors edition" thingie for Zombiu.

@radioactivez0r said:

THIS JUST IN: Women have breasts, and men like them. Not sure when "objectifying women" became synonymous with sexism, but they are 2 different things entirely.

Also I'd appreciate it if you included a phrase such as "I think" or "To me" because blanket statements about this being offensive and sexist intended to make it sound like a simple fact we all agree with is bullshit.

By definition, objectifying someone is treating them as less than human.

Exactly how is that not sexist?

Show of hands. Who among you would buy this? This isn't mean to be part of the debate. I'm genuinely curious if anyone actually wants this.

This nothing more than old fashioned headline grabbing, the best bet would be to actually ignore this fully aware puerile publicity stunt.

@patrickklepek said:

It’s different when it’s a woman

How is it any different, shouldn't the same values apply to both genders?

@Milkman said:

@dr_mantas said:

Sometimes I feel like the guy shouting SOYLENT GREEN IS PEOPLE. IT'S PEOPLE!

Except I feel like shouting IT'S YOU. YOU ARE THE SEXISTS. It's your white knighting and oversensitive reactions to everything. It's your overprotective attitude and dealing with women like they're made of glass and will shatter at the slightest wind. YOU ARE KEEPING WOMEN BACK.

Women are and should be equal to men in the eyes of the law, the government and their fellow humans. They are not a minority, they are the majority.

This isn't sexist. You are.

Get over yourselves. You are not helping. Really.

Okay, pro tip #1: stop using "white knight."

Second, I think you're going to need to a better job of explaining why people saying "hey, you shouldn't sell a pair of bloody tits" are "keeping women back." You're right that women should be equal to men in the eyes of all those things. But bullshit like this just proves that they're not, which is why it's a problem.

Name me one way in which this shows women's inequality to men.

And I will use "white knight", because it's a succinct term that means exactly what I want to say.

@august: So...tint it a green / grey and ship it?

The game is full of bloody torsos, no? Bikini-clad female torsos no less. Not saying this promotion is in good taste, but is Dead Island itself in good taste? Let's not be appalled by a zombie-boobs statue while going on to celebrate virtual decapitation and dismemberment. Why wouldn't a game that doles out violence at pornographic levels then have a violent, pornographic marketing campaign? At least it's being honest. Honest enough to know that I want nothing to do with it.

Sexist? REALLY? The fact that its FUCKING DISMEMBERED TORSO is the problem.

@hurtfulmadmax said:

I am fed up by this one sided perspective to feminism. As a women's rights activist, there is another side to feminism that embraces sexuality and promotes the idea that men and women can behave in a sexual manner because its part of their identity.

Patrick might get all uppity over this, but talk to Marina Ann Hantzis (AKA Sasha Grey) and the only thing she would probably find offensive about this statue is the gore.

Feminists aren't just Anita Sarkeesian and others of her ilk who promote a puritanical society that oppresses our sexual nature.

This is pretty much the reason I hate how much attention Anita Sarkeesian and her kickstarter got. Shes the wrong kind of feminist Part of the illogical morons who call any character that embraces her sexuality sexist.

I understand that the statue is dumb, but I really don't understand why it's being labeled as extremely sexist or an apology is required.

@Pezen said:

@patrickklepek said:

It’s different when it’s a woman

How is it any different, shouldn't the same values apply to both genders?

Nope!

@Robbiejo said:

Why does there need to be transparency?

They made a mistake and apologized. They broke no laws. They definitely didn't commit a offense that deserves public scrutiny of the inner workings of their company. It should be handled internally.

Totally disagree. The fact that an idea this completely fucked got as far as it did speaks wonders about the inner workings of that company (and probably the industry in general) and they definitely deserve some scrutiny, especially when their Community manager is also saying things like this:

Everything from the torso (what an ugly piece) to the whole internet argument about this is fucking ridiculous.

I feel like calling it sexist to use sexuality is kind of ridiculous, and that maybe the industry is just using this as a jumping off point to further the sexist meta narrative that's been established over the past year. That's certainly what Patrick seems to be doing, because it's not like posting a news story about a region exclusive collectors edition for a pretty niche game would be news worthy if it wasn't a chance to shout "SEXIST INDUSTRY."

What I take issue with is the fact that whoever made that statue thought it was sexy. If you want to include a sexy figure with your game, and it actually makes sense for your game, that's totally fine. Trying to use a dismembered torso to turn people on is fucking gross.

@patrickklepek Oh c'mon! This is really stupid. Patrick, I strongly respect women and always had, and I hate sexism towards women probably as much as you do but I really think you're overreacting with this one. Is everything involving a shirtless woman sexist to you? I mean, I don't think this statue is sexist at all and I don't think sexism is a big problem here, but the gruesomeness of the statue is. I understand you're feelings towards this kind of things but I really think you're going too far this time. It's getting really, really ridiculous...

@dr_mantas: It shows women's inequality to men by reducing them to a pair of faceless breasts. Not a new problem for video games but definitely still a big problem.

That's pretty fucked up

I suppose I'm either desensitized, apathetic, or both, because I just can't plug into all of this angst the majority seem to have over a disgusting collectible. I really want to though, because the other side of this argument seems much more exciting.

@Disconnect said:

@ManMadeGod said:

@TMThomsen said:

Sexism in the games industry! Worry not, Patrick is on the case!

It makes him sleep better at night.

This website is becoming agenda driven by one person. No one else would have ran this non-story.

You realize the only reason why Patrick is running this story right now is because of the fact that other websites are doing it, right? It's not like he's on a 24/7 Dead Island collector's edition watch. No one else would've run it because it's his job at GB to post news from the world of videogames.

Patrick was not hired to copy and paste every article from other sites onto GB. He gets to pick and choose what he wants to run. Those "other sites" run a lot of stuff that never makes it onto GB.

@Milkman said:

@LikeaSsur said:

Excuse me, Patrick, but is sexism really the issue here?

...Yes?

The problem with this statue isn't that it is just a dismembered female torso with a Union Jack bikini, it is that is a purposeful combination of sex and violence to sell video games to a bunch of young men. That is where the sexism comes in. People saying "what if it was a man's torso" is missing the point. It wouldn't be a man's torso because that wouldn't sell video games to straight male gamers. The idea behind this thing is clear: objectification of women to lure young men into buying a product.

Women are not objects. They are not goals to achieve and they are not props for advertising campaigns. They are people and they shouldn't have to ask for permission to be treated as such.

Yet here we are, another clear case of objectification. Yet some of you dudes are so dense, that you are falling for it like a bunch of idiots. You are willing to let this company insult your intelligence by selling you this garbage while simultaneously decrying people who try to call them on it.

Good job "gamers".

I can only finish if the woman is missing three or more body parts. I can deal with an intact head, but I won't be happy about it.

If it were male's torso, wouldn't it most likely be some dude's chest with huge pecs, strong shoulders, and abs? Isn't that kind of the male version of having a bust of a skinny woman with big breasts?

@Gold_Skulltulla said:

The game is full of bloody torsos, no? Bikini-clad female torsos no less. Not saying this promotion is in good taste, but is Dead Island itself in good taste? Let's not be appalled by a zombie-boobs statue while going on to celebrate virtual decapitation and dismemberment. Why wouldn't a game that doles out violence at pornographic levels then have a violent, pornographic marketing campaign? At least it's being honest. Honest enough to know that I want nothing to do with it.

*digital tip of the hat*

@Manhattan_Project said:

Sexist? REALLY? The fact that its FUCKING DISMEMBERED TORSO is the problem.

@hurtfulmadmax said:

I am fed up by this one sided perspective to feminism. As a women's rights activist, there is another side to feminism that embraces sexuality and promotes the idea that men and women can behave in a sexual manner because its part of their identity.

Patrick might get all uppity over this, but talk to Marina Ann Hantzis (AKA Sasha Grey) and the only thing she would probably find offensive about this statue is the gore.

Feminists aren't just Anita Sarkeesian and others of her ilk who promote a puritanical society that oppresses our sexual nature.

This is pretty much the reason I hate how much attention Anita Sarkeesian and her kickstarter got. Shes the wrong kind of feminist Part of the illogical morons who call any character that embraces her sexuality sexist.

you're right this headless torso is just embracing its sexuality

They're literally selling a woman as a sexual object, how can anyone not have a problem with that?

@ManMadeGod said:

@TMThomsen said:

Sexism in the games industry! Worry not, Patrick is on the case!

It makes him sleep better at night.

This website is becoming agenda driven by one person. No one else would have ran this non-story.

@NachoMatrimony said:

@LikeaSsur: Yes, it's part of the issue. Deep Silver's intent was to make "a grotesque take on an iconic Roman marble torso sculpture," which wound up meaning woman's mangled buxom torso that still manages to have big, unscathed breasts. It's less a send up of classic art then it is self-parody of the modern video game industry.

If there were wounds on the breasts you'd be even angrier.

@bigsmoke77 said:

They are using Female sexuality to try and sell something and it is just unnecessary, even wrong. Males are not sexually exploited, females are .

And stop trying to pull the ''this is not sexist'' argument. The line is clear even if Patrick doesn't quite know where it is yet.

Here is a clue:

THIS IS SEXIST

THIS IS NOT

The line is somewhere between the two.

@Triphos said:

Men's Rights Activists all up in this comments thread.

You guys are the worst.

Just quoting this and adding my voice in support, because this thread is bumming me out big time, and I do not want anyone thinking that being a GB member paints me by association as a gross, willfully-ignorant clown who is okay with this kind of bullshit objectification.

@nail1080 said:

What's the problem here? That looks awesome....people are easily offended these days, in fact so much so that they look out for stuff like this just so they can have a little bitch and a moan...."Oh no boobs is that what video games has come to?!!" Fuck off and get a life

i hope you're put on a list

@Mooshu said:

but c'mon. It’s different when it’s a woman, this is over the line, and Deep Silver should have known better.

Well that's a horrible fucking hypocritical double standard if I ever did hear one.

Yeah, I was onboard until that final comment. I sort of understand the intended sentiment but the way it's worded seems like a step back for the the position Patrick is trying to support.

@mracoon said:

They're literally selling a woman as a sexual object, how can anyone not have a problem with that?

They're selling a statue as a sexual object.

@Fluffdaddy said:

Women are not objects. They are not goals to achieve and they are not props for advertising campaigns. They are people and they shouldn't have to ask for permission to be treated as such.

Don't overreact so much. Women aren't objects? It's not a real woman that's on the cover. It's an entirely fictional character. If you're offended by it, don't buy it.

@Milkman said:

@dr_mantas: It shows women's inequality to men by reducing them to a pair of faceless breasts. Not a new problem for video games but definitely still a big problem.

This doesn't reduce all of women to a pair of breasts, nowhere does it say - this is all women are, it's just breasts, let's cut them up. It doesn't mean any of that, you make it mean that.

If it this statue had a head and a big old zombie face, would it be better? No, it would still be a ridiculously ugly statue. But that's not the point. The point is you can't prescribe malice to them whenever you feel like it.

BTW, talking of actual violence directed at a gender, are you familiar with the S.C.U.M. manifesto? Just wondering.

"but what if, like, it was a MAN's torso, guys!"

it's not, idiots, and guess why

BUT WHAT IF IT WAS! REVERSE SEXISM BURN ALL FEMINISTS MANUFACTURED OUTRAGE MAKES ME OUTRAGED

@CustomOtto said:

@Manhattan_Project said:

Sexist? REALLY? The fact that its FUCKING DISMEMBERED TORSO is the problem.

@hurtfulmadmax said:

I am fed up by this one sided perspective to feminism. As a women's rights activist, there is another side to feminism that embraces sexuality and promotes the idea that men and women can behave in a sexual manner because its part of their identity.

Patrick might get all uppity over this, but talk to Marina Ann Hantzis (AKA Sasha Grey) and the only thing she would probably find offensive about this statue is the gore.

Feminists aren't just Anita Sarkeesian and others of her ilk who promote a puritanical society that oppresses our sexual nature.

This is pretty much the reason I hate how much attention Anita Sarkeesian and her kickstarter got. Shes the wrong kind of feminist Part of the illogical morons who call any character that embraces her sexuality sexist.

you're right this headless torso is just embracing its sexuality

Dude, when I think "empowered woman" the first thing I think about is a violently torn-apart woman's torso!

@Fluffdaddy: sex/sexy/sexualization != sexism

if you're going to claim anything using sex to advertise or "lure young men in" is sexist, then well. most ads are sexist then. "that levi's commercial is sexist cus they used an attractive model to show off the jeans!" the fuck kinda logic is that?

@RockyRaccoon37 said:

@Pezen said:

@patrickklepek said:

It’s different when it’s a woman

How is it any different, shouldn't the same values apply to both genders?

Nope!

Let me give this a shot too.Violence happens to both genders and they ideally should be treated equally, but currently aren't. Don't mistake this as me being "up in arms" about how this wouldn't be a story if it were a male torso. Rather, I feel that people getting upset because the statue is female should re-evaluate their own views on gender equality.

@pyrodactyl: Thats a robot...

well i really didnt think there'd be any debate over this one but i underestimated the giant bomb hitler league

like seriously if you have any problem with patrick posting these stories you're a piece of shit. thank god giant bomb has patrick

@Platina32: I won't and I'll also loudly proclaim why I'm not buying so that the people who made this understand that it's not just about their shitty game. Then maybe next time they won't do this. That's how speech works.

@ChrisTaran said:

but c'mon. It’s different when it’s a woman

The most sexist thing I've seen Patrick ever write.

Yes this and his comment on the Cyberpunk 2077 trailer being gross makes me wonder what Patrick thinks sexism is.

Gamespot UK handled this better, they made a funny video out of it.